Sigfusson and the Hoosiers are battling Texas and Cal in a two-day meet.

Nov. 3, 2006

As Indiana's 12th-ranked swimming and diving team takes on two top-five programs in No. 3 Texas and No. 4 California in Austin, Texas, on Nov. 3-4, IU senior captain Paul Sigfusson will share his impressions of the trip. After the first day of competition, the Hoosiers trail Texas, 166-54, and Cal, 169-51.

"Surprisingly, our travel went well to get down here. Thursday night we
got in the water and trained to get the jet lag out of our systems.
Friday wasn't our best day of competition as a team but we had some
guys really step up and compete for wins. While we're training hard,
it's important for us as a young team to gain experience in competition
like this. The meet is set up similar to Big Tens, and to swim a three-session meet gives critical experience to the freshmen. Ben Hesen's swim in
the 100-yard backstroke was an important win for him and the team, as it helped the team morale going into Saturday.

"Overall it's been a learning experience for all of us, including the
coaching staff, coming down to Austin to swim Texas and Cal. This is
where our team wants to be in a couple of years, and it's been a good
opportunity to see what it's going to take to get there. For our
younger guys this is an opportunity to see what it takes to compete in
a top-10 program."